Stipe Miocic vs. Francis Ngannou tentative for UFC 220

The UFC is looking to start the year 2018 off with a bang. At the first pay-per-view of the year, it looks like UFC Heavyweight Champion Stipe Miocic will step into the cage at TD Garden Arena in Boston, MA opposite challenger Francis Ngannou. The bout was initially reported by an anonymous source to Simon Samano of MMA Junkie. This fight has not been publicly confirmed by UFC officials.

Stipe Miocic (17-2) captured the UFC Heavyweight Title in 2016, defeating former champion Fabricio “Vai Cavalo” Werdum at UFC 198. Miocic knocked out Werdum in the first round to take the strap home. Stipe would continue his run of short nights while defending his title. He defeated both Alistair Overeem and Junior dos Santos via first round stoppage . Stipe is now on the precipice of setting a UFC record, by being the first heavyweight champion to succesfully defend his belt three times. Will he be able to make history against Ngannou?

Francis “The Predator” Ngannou (11-1) has had a meteoric rise through the ranks of the UFC’s heavyweight division. Debuting for the promotion in 2015, Ngannou has not seen the third round in any of his six fights for the promotion. “The Predator” is a vicious striker, and was last seen at UFC 218. That night, Ngannou knocked out Alistair Overeem in 2:45 less than it took Stipe to do the same. Does the fast-learning, hard-hitting Cameroonian have what it takes to defeat the dynamic champion, Miocic?

UFC 220 goes down January 20th, 2018 at the TD Garden Arena in Boston, MA. The card is currently headlined by light heavyweight title clash between Daniel Cormier and Volkan Oezdemir. If the tentative bout between Stipe Miocic and Francis Ngannou is confirmed, it will llikely become UFC 220’s main event. For more MMA news and opinion, keep it locked to MMASucka.com!